Dynamic Light Assist - a bit rubbish?

[Rikochet]

Hi all,

 

I've had my Sportline + 272 for 6 months now and am very happy overall. My only real gripe is the Dynamic Light Assist - does anyone else find this poor in execution? I can see the beam cone adapting, but it's so slow to do so. Now got to the point where I just manually adjust the high beam as I'm sick of other motorists thinking I'm inconsiderate and dazzling them.

 

Cheers,

 

Rik

[TallPaul_S]

The one time I've tried it, I only had to manually dip the beam once for 50+ cars. 

 

Very bloody clever it is. 

 

I would only use it on single carriageway roads, can see the central reservation on a motorway blocking the view. 

[dumpling1954]

I've been using it for three & a half years now and can probably count on one hand the number of times I've been flashed.

[panmat]

Second that....... and the facelift matrix led take this to another level.

[JR RS]

my SLA version of Dynamic Light Assist is far from rubbish

its very accurate (masking), and quick to react to changes.

 

prior to my SLA retrofit, the HBA version of Dynamic Light Assist also had good reaction times too.

 

tis likely the A5 Front Camera is "off" and needs recalibration.  however u say urs is just over 6 months old, so i wouldn't b expecting this.

Edited 18 November, 2019 by JR RS

[Rikochet]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

 

I'll give them another test this week and try and get some footage from the dash cam to demonstrate what I'm seeing. 

 

Might be a trip to the dealer to investigate 🙄

[JR RS]

Some "grainy" vids of mine in action....

 

 

 

 

[Too Tall]

Works fine here...had a good run yesterday where you could really see the sharp cutoff to shield the car in front. Sides were lit up with highbeams. The reaction times are also on point. I was actually flashed the very first time last week, when cresting a hill. First time in 8 months I reckon.

[Sagalout]

The system can't predict, in the way that a human can, with regard to oncoming vehicles round bends/over crests etc so it can feel a little 'late' or 'slow' to react conmpared to what you would do manually. However, in my experience with these systems they are not slow enough to cause issues for oncoming or followed vehicles. I have never been flashed whilst using the Skoda fitted system.

They also have multiple beam patterns dependant on speed etc which can be misinterpreted as too low a beam throw at slower/urban speeds.

The system on my my17 L&K was the best I have driven. I had to have the software fix to prevent the 'lock out' on start up which caused  an incorrect set up sequence with the lbeam set at very low.

Perhaps a check by the dealer might be appropriate if you really think it is too slow to react?? 

[RicardoM]

Let's put it this way: all those "automatic" gizmos are for lazy drivers. They have only marketing value as bait for potential buyers. I mean, how hard it is to switch beams when YOU want? How hard it is to adjust the mirrors manually 2 feet away? Or opening/closing the tailgate? Or keeping the lane? Etc. etc. Do we slowly become more feeble, sleepy (almost dead) drivers?

[Stella6yew]

Looking at the dash cam clips you have posted, the system seems to be working as it should, it performs exactly as my own does. It is a bit alarming when the near side unit still displays high beam even when approaching traffic is in need view, but this always seems to point away from the approaching car & more towards the near side verge, the offside unit dips as it should. 

As I have said your system seems to perform exactly the same as mine does, so I don’t think there are any problems with it’s operation.

[TallPaul_S]

This is one of the best videos showing it working. 

 

 

[IanJD]

1 hour ago, RicardoM said:

Let's put it this way: all those "automatic" gizmos are for lazy drivers. They have only marketing value as bait for potential buyers. I mean, how hard it is to switch beams when YOU want? How hard it is to adjust the mirrors manually 2 feet away? Or opening/closing the tailgate? Or keeping the lane? Etc. etc. Do we slowly become more feeble, sleepy (almost dead) drivers?

I don't see how by manually switching from main beam to dip you can keep the nearside verge lit into the distance or how you can keep good visibility on your side of a dual carriageway without blinding oncoming traffic -- which is what SLA does.

 

Yes some gizmos are just labour-saving, but SLA isn't one of them, it genuinely makes driving at night easier and safer. It's one thing I'd pay extra for if it wasn't standard (which it is on the L&K), and that's speaking as somebody who thought it was a gimmick before I got a car equipped with it.

 

Have you actually driven a car with SLA for any distance at night?

[TallPaul_S]

SLA, active lane assist, ACC - all are safety technologies which just happen to make driving easier. 

 

Light assist - allows you to have a better view via a partial high beam whilst not blinding other cars

Lane assist - stops drivers veering out of a lane and makes it so less need to constantly adjust to keep in your lane, which allows you to be more aware of cars around you/other drivers. 

ACC - no effort required to constantly adjust cruise control, again you can focus more on other cars. 

 

Do you also think the lights turning on when the wipers have been on for 30 seconds is a marketing gimmick? Imo that feature should be on all cars, along with lights which only allow you turn them off/not automatic if you're in P or handbrake on. 

[RicardoM]

58 minutes ago, IanJD said:

Have you actually driven a car with SLA for any distance at night?

No, yet I didn't feel the need for having it. The biggest progress for the last 20 years or so in terms of lighting is switching from halogen to HID or LED lights.

[IanJD]

2 hours ago, RicardoM said:

No, yet I didn't feel the need for having it. The biggest progress for the last 20 years or so in terms of lighting is switching from halogen to HID or LED lights.

In that case you're not qualified to say whether it's a gimmick or not... 😉

[Too Tall]

4 hours ago, RicardoM said:

Let's put it this way: all those "automatic" gizmos are for lazy drivers.

 

Well I definately do not agree. You said it yourself you have no experience with the system.  It's way more then 'just' flashing highbeams. When you have bad road markings and traffic signs like here in Belgium it's very handy to see a bit further. Often I think it helps the car in front of me too by illuminating the road aside to their car aswell as in front of mine.

 

It has nothing to do with laziness, it enhances the experience of driving at night. The SLA system together with the Virtual cockpit in 'night mode' (let me guess, you find that another gizmo?) is a godsend for people who spend alot of time driving at night on unlit or poorly lit roads.

Edited 18 November, 2019 by Too Tall

[Sagalout]

One significant advantage is that the system improves your chance of seeing pedestrians, cyclists etc on the near side compared to standard low/high beam. Is it a gimmick? Deffo not, it is a useful system to HELP a driver be more safe both for the people in the car and those outside. 

Lazy drivers are lazy drivers not the fault of modern safety systems.

[RicardoM]

3 hours ago, IanJD said:

In that case you're not qualified to say whether it's a gimmick or not... 😉

Sure, you need years of practice and another college to understand the thing and have an opinion. I wonder how drivers survived the nightmare of not having SLA 🤨

[JR RS]

8 hours ago, Stella6yew said:

Looking at the dash cam clips you have posted, the system seems to be working as it should, it performs exactly as my own does. It is a bit alarming when the near side unit still displays high beam even when approaching traffic is in need view, but this always seems to point away from the approaching car & more towards the near side verge, the offside unit dips as it should. 

As I have said your system seems to perform exactly the same as mine does, so I don’t think there are any problems with it’s operation.

 

Those r my phonecam clips.

I have no issues or problems with mine.

 

I was just illustrating to @Rikochet how well the SLA works and reacts

[Rikochet]

Thanks all for the comments.

 

Late home from work so not reviewed the dash cam, but only flashed once on the drive in and twice on the way home - a bit of an improvement, but still not satisfactory.

 

I may be old fashioned, but I think I'll stick to being in control. I was watching how the DLA reacted during the morning commute and I could have dipped my headlights a good few seconds before the car decided to change the beam pattern.

[john999boy]

8 hours ago, RicardoM said:

Let's put it this way: all those "automatic" gizmos are for lazy drivers. They have only marketing value as bait for potential buyers. I mean, how hard it is to switch beams when YOU want? Do we slowly become more feeble, sleepy (almost dead) drivers?

 

31 minutes ago, RicardoM said:

Sure, you need years of practice and another college to understand the thing and have an opinion. I wonder how drivers survived the nightmare of not having SLA 🤨

If your car doesn't have SLA lights then there is no way that you, in a non SLA equipped car, can have a beam pattern as good as in an SLA equipped car. Period.

There isn't a nightmare in not having them but similarly, would you prefer to still have halogens over your acknowledged HID/LED improved lights?

[Rikochet]

17 minutes ago, JR RS said:

 

Those r my phonecam clips.

I have no issues or problems with mine.

 

I was just illustrating to @Rikochet how well the SLA works and reacts

 

The time between 45 and 46 seconds on the 1st clip illustrates my frustration - the on-coming driver is dazzled before the system reforms the beam

[silver1011]

^ was just about to say the same.

 

SLA is an improvement for those behind the wheel, but in the same way LED headlights have improved driving conditions for some, there are also those that are disadvantaged by the very same technology.

 

My Mercedes-Benz has SLA and whilst it works well it isn't as good as me at being able to dip the headlights BEFORE the oncoming car comes into view, rather than very shortly afterwards, by which point the other driver has already been dazzled.

 

The reason they often don't flash you is simply because they assumed you were a little slow to manually dip the lights.

[JR RS]

32 minutes ago, Rikochet said:

 

The time between 45 and 46 seconds on the 1st clip illustrates my frustration - the on-coming driver is dazzled before the system reforms the beam

 

 

So out of all that footage, the one time it's 2 secs to slow react deems the system rubbish!?!?

Crikey!!

It's an assist system.  It's not a human-replacement system.

It uses cameras and reacts accordingly.  

It's not human to predict wat is coming around a corner/turn and pre-react.

SLA is a reactive system, not a predictive system.

 

p.s. I've had many scenarios where humans have taken longer than 2 secs to turn off their high-beams, cause they're distracted or don't realise that light travels across dividers!!